Biographical Data :

Name :

Leka Zogu

Period :

1939 - 2011

Biographical detail :

Crown prince of Albania

When King Zog fled with his family after Mussoliniís troops invaded Albania Zogu was two days old. Half a century later, after communism fell in his homeland, Zogu made two abortive attempts to return to Tirana as king. Many Albanians, however, saw him as a historical irrelevance.

In 1928, Zoguís father Ahmet Zog, a chieftain, proclaimed himself King Zog 1, Albaniaís first monarch after the country gained independence from the Ottoman Empire. The royal family fled to Greece then, via Egypt and France, to Britain.

Albaniaís communist government abolished monarchy in 1946. Leka Zogu also spent his time residing in Spain, Rhodesia, South Africa

Educated in Egypt, Switzerland, Britainís Sandhurst military academy and then the Sorbonne, Leka Zogu became heir apparent in 1957. After the death of his father in 1961, Zogu was proclaimed king of the Albanians by a national assembly in exile.

At 6ft 8in (2.02m) tall, Zogu was a towering figure, known as the tallest man in Albania. He lived his last nine years in his native land until his demise. After dying of a heart attack, his burial service was attended by the countryís top leaders.